287. Mad Dog 매드독 (2017) Korean

Yoo Ji Tae, Woo Do Hwan, Ryu Hwa Young, Jo Jae Yun, Kim Hye Seong, Choi Won Young

Drama Rating: 6/10     Neck Score: A++

I think that this one was more about who was in it than the actual plot, or quality of the show.  Lizabreff and I already had noona crushes on Woo Do Hwan, and Curdy is in love with Yoo Ji Tae, plus it's a con man mystery plot, which is also her favorite, and I will watch anything for Choi Won Young, so we had to watch it.  However, it wasn't necessarily amazing, but the characters at least were very compelling.  The villains were all over the top bad.  Like all of them.  They would all take turns trying to out do each other, or take turns who was going to be the "good" bad guy, or the person who was the most humane and decent at the time.  It got annoying how overly powerful all the villains were, backstabbing and ridiculously evil.  Wow, no wonder everyone would pause to over react to the next evil plot, or passionately scream at how evil their deeds were.  It was like crazy cheesy at times, but it was also good.  I loved it, even when the dramatic reactions made me laugh.

262. Father is Strange 아버지가 이상해 (2017) Korean

Kim Young Chul,  Kim Hae Sook, Lee Joon,  Jung So Min, Lee Yoo Ri, Ryu Soo Young, Min Jin Woong, Lee Mi Do, Ryu Hwa Young, Ahn Hyo Seop

Drama Rating: 8/10     Neck Score: A+

I love a good 50 episode family drama, and that is exactly what this was.  So many wonderful characters that you can just grow to love, because you have all the time in the world.  I love it because you can take time to develop characters fully and let relationships build naturally.  This usually makes me way more invested in all the characters and all the relationships to the point where I'm crying and giggling at any wedding or big event near the end.  This was no exception.

The plot of this was a bit interesting, since it is focused on a family with three strong minded girls who all take after their strong minded mother, and then the one older brother who takes after the easygoing sweet father.  However there are, of course, family secrets- practically birth secrets here- when an idol turned actor shows up looking for his father who happens to be the dad of this family.  This is potentially bad because the main OTP is clearly this actor (Lee Joon) and his manager, who is the third child in the family (Jung So Min).  But they let us slowly unravel the secrets until all the crap hits the fan and it's all dramatic, and all that.

217. Age of Youth 청춘시대 (2016) Korean

Han Ye Ri, Han Seung Yeon, Park Eun Bin, Ryu Hwa Young, Park Hye Soo

Drama Rating: 8/10     Neck Score: A

Can I just say: yes, please?  A drama about five strong women going through their own problems and dealing with crap and making mistakes?  Yes, please.  Sisterhood, womance, and not needing men to make everything better?  Yes, please.  Talking about real issues without glossing things over or wrapping everything up in a big bow?  Yes, please.  Five amazing female characters who are fully fleshed out, relatable, and lovable?  Heck yes, please!  A full range of different types of male characters from the scum of the earth to the most adorable thing on earth?  Yes!  I absolutely loved everything about this drama, including the fact that I hated that sseuregi seakki, that michinnom, because that was one of the many real life issues that needed to be addressed.  I especially loved all the relationships, between the roommates, between the cutie boys and the girls they liked.  I loved that it was not about romance, but about relationships, the good and bad, the love and friendship, and all the ups and downs.  That being said, I do wish there was a little more of the romance relationships, especially at the end.  I just wanted a little more, because it was cute and I wanted to see lots of cute at the end, not just a little cute.  More Ji Won and her club friend!  More Freckle Nose and Senior Yoon!  If there was just a tiny bit more of that at the end, I would have loved it, not a lot, just a little indulgence... but that also was what made it so good.  Even in the end, all the relationships were real.  The lack of confidence, wondering what the other person is thinking and feeling, the missed opportunities, lack of communication, and everything.  It was so good.  There were some many moments and little details that made it so real.  Like taking a bra off in the middle of a conversation (because who actually wears those death traps at home?) or Eun Jae and her senior talking and thinking about two different things at once... like all the time.  So much cute, so much pain, so much perfect.  I loved all those girls, even though they were all so frustrating.  So realistically frustrating that you had to love them all the more.  Why is it over?  Why was it only 12 episodes?  Give me more!  I already miss my girls!